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Antietam National Cemetery at Antietam National Battlefield, Sharpsburg, Maryland. The Battle of Antietam is the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with a combined tally of dead, wounded, and missing at 22,717.

The Battle of Antietam, also known as the Battle of Sharpsburg, particularly in the South, fought on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam Creek as part of the Maryland Campaign, was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Union soil. It is the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with a combined tally of dead, wounded, and missing at 22,717.

After pursuing Confederate General Robert E. Lee into Maryland, Union Army Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan launched attacks against Lee's army, in defensive positions behind Antietam Creek. At dawn on September 17, Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker's corps mounted a powerful assault on Lee's left flank. Attacks and counterattacks swept across Miller's cornfield and fighting swirled around the Dunker Church. Union assaults against the Sunken Road eventually pierced the Confederate center, but the Federal advantage was not followed up. In the afternoon, Union Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside's corps entered the action, capturing a stone bridge over Antietam Creek and advancing against the Confederate right. At a crucial moment, Confederate Maj. Gen. A. P. Hill's division arrived from Harpers Ferry and launched a surprise counterattack, driving back Burnside and ending the battle. Although outnumbered two-to-one, Lee committed his entire force, while McClellan sent in less than three-quarters of his army, enabling Lee to fight the Federals to a standstill. During the night, both armies consolidated their lines. In spite of crippling casualties, Lee continued to skirmish with McClellan throughout September 18, while removing his battered army south of the Potomac River.

Despite having superiority of numbers, McClellan's attacks failed to achieve force concentration, allowing Lee to counter by shifting forces and moving interior lines to meet each challenge. Despite ample reserve forces that could have been deployed to exploit localized successes, McClellan failed to destroy Lee's army. McClellan had halted Lee's invasion of Maryland, but Lee was able to withdraw his army back to Virginia without interference from the cautious McClellan. Although the battle was tactically inconclusive, the Confederate troops had withdrawn first from the battlefield, making it, in military terms, a Union victory. It had significance as enough of a victory to give President Abraham Lincoln the confidence to announce his Emancipation Proclamation, which discouraged the British and French governments from potential plans for recognition of the Confederacy.

Inside #22Kill, a star-studded campaign to fight veteran suicide >> Washington Post
It's called #22Kill, a nod toward a jarring statistic: About 22 military veterans commit suicide each day, according to a report released last year by the Department of Veterans Affairs. The majority are committed by veterans who are at least 50 years old, the VA said, but suicides in the active-duty ranks and by recent veterans have hit close to home for individuals like Jernigan, who have served alongside them.

Army Captain Battling Cancer Takes On Veteran Suicides >> CBS Boston
Army Captain Justin Fitch is dying. He has only months left. But before he was even diagnosed with cancer he thought about killing himself. "When I first joined the Army in active duty there was a culture, a very quiet culture, of suffering in silence," Fitch told WBZ-TV's Jonathan Elias. "Mission first, never worry about yourself."

Watch service dog calm war vet's PTSD reaction >> USA Today
Erick Scott knows first-hand how it feels to suffer from PTSD. A veteran who served in Iraq, this husband and father came home from the fighting only to be confronted by his own demons. Refusing at first to believe the PTSD diagnosis from his doctor, it wasn't until he heard about K9s for Warriors that he began to feel some hope.

Sep 17, 1862: Rebels and Yankees clash at the Battle of Antietam >> History.com
On this day in 1862, at the Battle of Antietam, Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and Union General George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac fight to a standstill along a Maryland creek on the bloodiest day in American history. Although the battle was a tactical draw, it forced Lee to end his invasion of the North and retreat back to Virginia.

House clears increase in veterans' disability payments >> The Hill
The House on Tuesday evening cleared legislation to increase compensation benefits for veterans with disabilities. Passed by voice vote, S. 2258 would hike veterans' disability compensation starting on Dec. 1 so that the cost-of-living increase would match the rate of Social Security benefits.

Soldier rescues woman from alligator-infested waters >> US Army
A U.S. Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal technician rescued a woman from alligator-infested waters here. Pfc. Nathan Currie, from the 756th Explosive Ordnance Disposal Company, was fishing on the south dock of Fort Stewart's Holbrook Pond, when he heard the splash from a sedan driving into the pond.

Vets flex their muscles — and business skills — at fitness jobs >> New York Post
At the crack of dawn, a roomful of 20 fitness buffs are determinedly doing jumping jacks and burpees in T-shirts with the words "Honor, Courage, Commitment" printed across the back. A drill sergeant-like voice pierces the silence - "This is the best you can do?" - and even the most exhausted stragglers pick up the pace.

Dereliction of Duty >> Ziegler & Lane Social Security Disability Law
Matthew D. Lane writes a blog post called Dereliction of Duty: I am a proud U.S. Army veteran who served with the 82nd Airborne Division during the first Gulf War (1990-91). My friends and fellow paratroopers have fought and died over the last thirteen years in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.

The Veterans No One Talks About >> National Journal
The Pentagon says that the majority of soldiers-about 77 percent-do receive an honorable discharge. But more than 600,000 received a lesser rating between fiscal years 2000 and 2013, according to a Defense Department breakdown. These soldiers often feel left behind by the government and find it very hard to get the full benefits they believe they have earned.